Enrichment Activities Within the Classroom
(These are supplements to the core subject matter lessons and learning center activities for the day)
Language Arts
Reading:
- Accelerated Reader computer program—students read books tailored to their individual reading level and answer comprehension questions. As the students master each reading level, they are allowed to choose books from the next level. A printout of their progress is given approximately four times a year. The children enjoy this aspect of our reading program and we are so proud of the growth we see throughout the school year. Many of the authors we study are included in the book choices for accelerated reader and these books are always favorites among the students!
- Students are read with individually, in small groups, in mixed ability groups, in leveled ability groups and with peers in partner reading activities.
Writing:
- Journaling—a daily writing journal is kept at school and used as an informal assessment tool for the teachers. Weekly, the children’s writing progress is edited for punctuation, sentence structure, and grammar.
- Students will write sentences which include weekly spelling unit words, science and social studies terms and vocabulary “words for the day” definitions.
- It is also used to write about the elements of literature—main idea/details, characterization, sequencing of story events, plot, and summarizing based on stories in our literacy place readers, accelerated reader stories, author study stories or other types of classroom literature.
- Sometimes students have “free writing” where they are encouraged to be creative, for example, by making up a different ending to a book they have read individually or we have read together and/or write summaries about topics of their choice such as space or dinosaurs based on a book they have read from our classroom library.
- These writing activities greatly improve students’ reading skills and comprehension levels. The journals provide the students with a concrete way to measure their own progress as writers and they are always excited to see their own progress throughout the year.
- Folders—extension activities that focus on creativity and vocabulary development are available in our writing folders. After a student has completed the required seatwork and learning center activities for the day, he or she may go to the writing folder and pull an activity of their choice to complete.
- There is usually a choice of activities based on what we are doing at that particular time of year in our social studies, science and religion lesions as well as creative writing choices.
Math:
- Folders—extension/challenge/advanced math activities pertaining to the curriculum being covered at that time. Students may choose from these once the required class work is completed.
- Tubs—our math center tubs are available for enrichment at all times—for example, if a student has mastered his/her fact families through 8 (5+3=8, 3+5=8, 8-3=5, 8-5=3), that student may go on to working on fact mastery through 10. The tubs and center manipulatives are used in this way so that students who need reinforcement or enrichment may work individually, with peers, or with teachers to master or extend skill levels.
- All activities foster and develop critical thinking skills and problem solving techniques.
***Other enrichment opportunities are presented throughout the year as well.